Syracuse GK Juan Martinez-Bastidas keeps clean sheet in debut win over Iona
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There was hardly a hint this was Juan Martinez-Bastidas’ collegiate debut.
Even with a comfortable lead, Syracuse’s starter between the sticks made sure his voice carried across SU Soccer Stadium, loud enough for every spectator to hear. With every commanding shout, Martinez-Bastidas embodied a seasoned veteran rather than a sophomore making his first appearance.
His confidence gave the Orange another layer of security as they kept Iona away from dangerous areas and controlled the match at the back. With No. 1 option Kyle Jansen taking a seat Monday, Martinez-Bastidas helped Syracuse (3-1-0, 0-0-0 Atlantic Coast) cruise to a 4-0 home win over Iona (1-1-1, 0-0-0 Metro), with its defense limiting the Gaels to two corners and five shots — only one on goal.
“He was calm,” SU head coach Ian McIntyre said postgame. “Nothing really ruffles Big Juan.”
The goalkeeper was granted the perfect wish for any debut goalie: a convincing, early lead, which was the case Friday when the Orange also notched a shutout against Loyola. Just over 10 minutes in, Syracuse jumped out to a 2-0 start on balls headed in by Buster Honeywood and Bryson Rodriguez as it controlled most of the match.
SU’s goalie wasn’t given a worthy test until the 24th minute, when Iona’s Ricardo Vivo Calderon freed some space outside the box for a left-footed shot, prompting a full extension from Martinez-Bastidas. He pushed the long ball wide of the post with his left-hand fingers, giving the Gaels their first corner.
The first-time starter got to his feet and was back to commanding his backline. He pulled midfielder Ivan Irinimbabazi to the side, ushering him to his defensive position, and sure enough, Irinimbabazi made the initial clearance.
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Martinez-Bastidas had already settled in when Iona finally found its best chance. Five minutes into the second half, Ignacio Manzanares received the ball behind the midfield line, and, on his own, broke through Syracuse’s defense. The Gaels’ leading scorer was through on goal and seemed poised to end the clean sheet. Martinez-Bastidas charged off his line, leapt at the ball and with a strong two hands, claimed the ball before Iona could unleash a shot.
Just a minute earlier, Manzanares had another chance, if you’d even call it that. The forward tried giving Martinez-Bastidas a fair try. He collected the ball roughly 10 yards outside the box and took one touch forward before releasing a shot with Jackson Miller smothered on his hip.
The ball rolled outside the post, and SU’s new goalie didn’t react, already heading to collect the ball, which rolled past the endline. The chance represented Iona’s offense Monday — it tried anything it could to break through Syracuse’s three-player backline and the new man in charge of it.
With under 14 minutes left and a commanding 3-0 lead for the Orange, Iona’s Florian Schutt sent a through ball between defender Pablo Patrick-Galvez and Sachiel Ming, who’d been traversing the left wing throughout the rainy night. Initially, it looked like Patrick-Galvez would arrive at the ball first with plenty of time, but after forward Francesco Borla pressured, Martinez-Bastidas made the split-second decision to come out and dive on the ball.
“They got a little bit of momentum, but he was very composed and made the right decision to run on it,” McIntyre said.
The strong defensive performance in front of its new goalie allowed Syracuse to spread its minutes around. Several players made their season debuts Monday, including Martinez-Bastidas, Patrick-Galvez and Dominic Bell, who returned after two years away with a double ACL surgery.
With a defense in front of him that ensured a shutout, Martinez-Bastidas’ debut never became bigger than it needed to be, as Jansen watched from the sidelines. Martinez-Bastidas made the stops he had to, commanded his box and trusted the defenders in front of him. Syracuse did the same for him.
“He was secure,” McIntyre said. “He’s got some guys in front (of him), and we worked really hard.”
